UFC champ Velasquez and other Bay Area fighters hit the links for charity bike build

SAN JOSE, Calif. – The Cinnabar Hills Golf Club is a place a champion such as Cain Velasquez can afford to be off his game – a luxury he won’t have come Nov. 12, when the UFC debuts on network TV on FOX.

Before the American Kickboxing Academy representative meets Junior Dos Santos for the UFC heavyweight crown at Honda Center in Anaheim, Calif., he arrives on the links for a recent charity golf tournament in between morning and nighttime training sessions.

Velasquez was one of 15 fighters donating his time and auction items to benefit Turning Wheels for Kids, a local nonprofit that raises money to build new bikes for children.

Past and present Strikeforce champions such as Gilbert Melendez, Luke Rockhold, Josh Thomson and Muhammad Lawal were on hand for the Oct. 28 event. Even a fighter who doesn’t mind a bad-guy persona, Josh Koscheck, shared in the effort. Not everyone golfed (Velasquez included), but teammates Daniel Cormier and Rockhold enjoyed the polo-wearing, birdie lifestyle enough for all.

It’s the second year Bay Area MMA has supported the cause, which first caught the attention of Strikeforce CEO Scott Coker. He read about it in the newspaper and came to the idea of a charity golf tournament when convincing his golfing buddy, former Strikeforce middleweight champion Frank Shamrock, to take lessons.

Shamrock admits he sucks. He applies his typical blunt assessments to the benefits of today’s charity event.

“My first bike I stole,” Shamrock, who was a troubled youth before being taken in by his adoptive father, Bob Shamrock, and discovering martial arts, told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com). “I have a feeling [Turning Wheels for Kids] probably curbed some crime.”

A former foe of Shamrock, Cung Le believes the role of martial artist requires expressing gratitude to the community with volunteer work.

“I came over [to the U.S.] as a refugee; I was in a refugee camp for three months,” the former Strikeforce middleweight champion said. “I feel very blessed. So if I get a chance, I’m going to give back as much as I could.”

On Dec. 10, roughly 800 volunteers will gather at the San Jose Convention Center to build bikes for six hours using the funds raised at the Take a Swing Fore Kids tournament, and that’ll provide thousands of bikes to local youths aged from toddler to teenager. The charity has built 11,000 bikes in its seven years. This past year’s fighter golf tournament was successful to the tune of 2,400 new bikes being donated to the community. Turning Wheels for Kids hopes the notoriety the fighters brings can increase the impact they have because one more fighter means one more dollar for one more bike, which can have a lifetime benefit.

Founding board member Nancy Huff said the aim of the organization is to keep children active in a time of record obesity. Partnered with local physicians, they’ve found bikes reduce the body mass index of children in the community. It’s about children staying healthy and building their self-esteem. Most importantly, it’s about giving them the means to be a kid.

She points out fighters enjoy the event because in addition to golfing alongside NFL and San Francisco 49ers Hall of Famer Jerry Rice, they have a chance to reflect fondly on their first bike. UFC light heavyweight Kyle Kingsbury shares his story of receiving a Huffy at 6 years old, quickly showing off the scar he earned at 7. Sporting a fanny pack and oversized pink sunglasses, Kingsbury exemplifies the fighters’ childlike enthusiasm in doing their part to roll new bikes into kids’ lives around Christmas.

Velasquez describes the event as one of the more rewarding tasks on his increasingly lengthy to-do list as UFC heavyweight champion. Still, he has a hard time taking a shine to golf more than he does his time in the octagon.

“I’d be a golfer if golfing was much better [than hitting people],” Velasquez said, “but its not.”

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